The present invention relates to a device for dispensing sheets of paper from a stack.
Boxes for holding sheets of paper in a stack are well-known and commonly used. Sheets of paper are manually removed from these boxes which may comprise either a lower housing member or both a lower and an upper housing member connected by a hinge. The main problem with these simple devices is that it is difficult to conveniently remove one sheet of paper at any one time because of friction between the sheets in the stack. For boxes comprising a lower housing member, there is also the problem of scattering sheets of paper since there is nothing to retain them.
Mechanically more complex dispensing devices have been developed to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art. A necessary element of these devices is generally an upper housing member. One such device is Halm, U.S. Pat. No. 3,907,159 which employs an annular body mounted on the upper housing member of the box. The annular body is compressed by the upper and lower housing members so that it will engage sheets of paper and move them into a narrow dispensing slot as they are pulled out by hand. In addition, the aforementioned device consists of a shelflike projection located at the dispensing slot upon which a sheet of paper may rest so that only one sheet is dispensed at a time. One drawback of an apparatus of this type is that the dispensing slot is so narrow that there is the possibility of bunching paper inside the box. Another drawback is its lack of versatility in that both an upper and lower housing are required in order for the dispenser to function properly, and the requirement that the device must rest horizontally with the bottom of the lower housing member in contact with the desk or other object on which it is placed.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved dispensing device for dispensing sheets of paper from a stack one at a time.
Another object of this invention is to provide a versatile paper dispensing device which performs the same dispensing function while positioned either horizontally or vertically.
Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved paper dispensing means, with easy access to the paper supply.
Another object of this invention is to provide a single sheet paper dispenser which will efficiently prevent more than one sheet at a time from being dispensed.
Objects and advantages of the invention are set forth in part herein and inpart will be obvious herefrom, or may be learned by practice with the invention, the same being realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.
This invention consists in the novel parts, constructions, arrangements, combinations and improvements herein shown and described.